Three people who tested positive for Legionnaires’ disease have died amid an outbreak at an assisted living home in Albany, N.Y., which sickened at least seven others, officials said Friday.
The deaths came amid what Marybeth Miller, Albany County’s interim health commissioner, described in an email as a “cluster” of Legionnaires’ cases at Peregrine Senior Living at Shaker Home that officials learned of on Aug. 30.
Ms. Miller wrote that water samples from the home showed the presence of Legionella bacteria, which causes disease. She said the county health department has placed some restrictions on water use at home, One of 11 operating in Peregrine New York and MarylandWhen further tests were conducted. Water filters have been installed at some showers and sinks so residents can still use the bathroom, she added.
“There is no threat to the community at large,” Ms Miller wrote.
Christine Ganim, the home’s executive director, said staff are working with health officials to address the outbreak. In addition to installing filters throughout the water treatment system, staff members were providing bottled water to residents, he said.
“I want to assure all of our residents, staff and visitors that our community is completely safe,” she said in a statement.
Legionella bacteria occur naturally in water, and people commonly develop Legionnaires’ disease, a. Type of pneumoniaInhaling mist or water vapor containing the bacteria, according to the state health department. Legionella can thrive in poorly maintained industrial water systems; cooling towers; or heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems, respectively Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
According to the state health department, people age 50 and older and those with weakened immune systems are at particular risk of developing the disease. Symptoms, which usually begin two to 10 days after exposure to the bacteria, include fever, headache, muscle aches, cough and difficulty breathing.
Most cases can be successfully treated with antibiotics, but one in 10 people who contract the disease die. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. About one in four people who contract it die at a health care facility.
Mary Rozak, a spokeswoman for Albany County Executive Daniel McCoy, said 25 people have been linked. 171 bed house were hospitalized in connection with the outbreak. Ten tested positive, including three who died, she said. About nine others tested negative; The remaining symptoms were reported but not tested.
Of the three people who died, Ms. Rozak said, two were hospitalized for treatment of other illnesses, and it was unclear whether Legionnaires’ disease killed them.
Legionella bacteria were first discovered in 1976 through an outbreak linked to an American Legion convention in Philadelphia. According to the Safety and Health Administration, there are about 6,000 documented cases of the disease each year in the United States, and 200 to 800 new ones, according to York. State Health Department. Officials say the statistics may understate the true number of cases because many infections go undiagnosed or unreported.
The number of reported cases of Legionnaires’ disease has been increasing since the early 2000s and has peaked in 2018. CDC data shows. The number of cases dropped when the Covid-19 pandemic began but started to rise again in 2021, the data shows.
There have been several outbreaks in New York City over the past decade, including one Five people were killed in a Manhattan nursing home in 2022 and Another in 2015 Due to which 16 people died and was connected to a cooling tower in the Bronx.
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